Lemonade Anyone?

Photo by Charity Beth Long on Unsplash

Do you know someone who claims to be a Christian, yet acts anything but? They say they believe in God and go to church each Sunday. But, their words and actions tell a completely different story. You witness things they say and do on a weekly basis and wonder if they even know what the word “Christian” means.

Well, I am currently in that situation. (I have been for a while.) And, I have a feeling many of you have been in the same spot. You know that old saying, “Perception is reality.”? Well, it’s an old saying for a reason; because it’s true. It also makes me think of, “Walk the walk and talk the talk.” If you are a Christian, you should not have to tell me that, I should just be able to figure that out by your words and actions. (At least, in an ideal world, I would. Especially if I spend any significant amount of time around you.)

Part of me becomes dubious about anyone who must proclaim things about themselves. If they say something like, “I am a great person. I donate lots of money to deserving nonprofits.” I often wonder where their intentions lie. Are they telling me this to impress me? Do they think it makes them look good? Why would they ever say that out loud? Are they trying to convince themselves that they are a good person? Are they that insecure? I honestly do not get it.

At any rate, I am sharing all of this because it got me to thinking; I am learning a lot about how I want to live my life. Or, in this case, how I do NOT want to live it. The person I have been referring to above has been teaching me that I want to be sincere Christian. I want my words and actions to be clear. I want them to match up and not allow anyone to question or doubt who I am. I want to be kindness and love personified. I want to be a true reflection of Christ. This is called sanctification.

It is all a process in sanctification. I am becoming sanctified. Day by day. I am allowing the Holy Spirit to tear down the old me and renew my mind day by day. This process will continue until the day I die. But, man, am I ever grateful for it.

I am trying to take the lemons in my life and make lemonade out of them. It is my goal to use every possible opportunity I can to learn and grow in my spiritual life, and this is no exception. It is a good reminder to be able to look around at my environment and find places that I can work on. And, this is a huge opportunity for growth. Actually, this particular issue allows for growth on many levels.

What about you? Do you have any “lemon” areas in your life that you can make some lemonade out of? There can be opportunities that are glaringly obvious, and other tiny ones you have to dig for. Either way, it will do us all a world of good if we start to look at these irritants as opportunities for growth. When we start to make positive things happen from seemingly negative situations, that is where our power lies. That is where true growth happens. And, the lemonade you make from these situations will taste so, so good and satisfying.